Nakarian Contagion

Zombies are quite popular and common and ocan be seen as easy subject matter for thrills and horror in modern media. Scare attractions are no exception - zombies rear their heads in countless scare experiences and have, in recent years, become much abused target practice (#scarelivesmatter) in fast paced, action focused zombie experiences including themed obstacle races to zombie survival training experiences. At first, Nakarian Contagion appears to fit this exact description, a fun thrillride for an itchy trigger finger - and then you enter...

The queueline consisted of hastily built barriers and medical emergency staff frantically pacing up and down the line screening all guests (two of us were taken away for additional 'testing' to see if we have developed any symptoms of the contagion, adding a personal interaction to the experience). Before long, we were lead as a team of five and presented with a brief history of Lugaria; a fictitious Eastern European country, torn apart by political friction, resulting in a viral outbreak.

Our team were soon equipped with replica firearms (courtesy of iCombatUK) and our primary objectives were to protect our fixer, a member of the cast who serves as our local guide and ammo supplier, and seek and extract any evidence which could uncover what happened within the capital.

What makes this experience so unique is that we were briefed at the beginning that we may encounter political insurgents who may take hostile action against us should they come in contact, but we are not told what they look like. Naturally, everyone's first instinct would be to "shoot first, question later", so what makes this section so special is that we soon discover the insurgents are in fact guests that entered shortly after us. As the attraction had an 8 minute turnover, this ploy had been developed to counteract any overlapping that may occur while inside - an inspired way to not just solve a problem that could break immersion, but to use it to strengthen the experience.

The fixer character was fantastic in keeping the story flowing, as well as additional help from the incredible setting, making us feel that we really were in a war torn country and not in fact running around a warehouse in Surrey! As the event progresses (this was in essence a special preview visit), the dialogue and timing of the show will get tighter and more precise. This event will definitely enjoyed most by those who wish to get into the spirit of the world and play the part, but even if you choose not to take a role, you can't help but be immersed in the atmosphere the cast provide.

One small note to make is that although we knew the WHAT of our tasks, we were not entirely clear on the WHY. Perhaps the queue line interaction could develop this in the midst of the pre-show chaos. This should be noted that while we visited during a preview, and what we encountered was enjoyable, we can only anticipate growth in the future, and we cannot wait to return in the new year.